The Revenant
by luna-magic-2005
Summary: AU. Kagome escapes to the countryside in order to get away from things in her past that drove her crazy. But when she moves into her new house, the past quickly starts to catch up to her... Written for Freya's Haunted Challenge.
1. Chapter 1

I do not own Inuyasha. I never have, and never will.

Written for Freya's Haunted Challenge.

**Okay people, please read this authors note!**

There are going to be **dark **themes throughout this entire story, so if you are familiar with my usual stories and think this will be a lighthearted romantic comedy - think again! There will be ghostly encounters, sexual situations, and a whole bunch of other craziness.

The rating is MA, so folks who are underage don't even bother reading this.

Hugs and kisses go out to **zandrellia** and **Synyster Star**, who helped me by tossing around ideas, discarding a few (or a lot), beating me over the head (syn), and sending me songs for motivation and inspiration! Thanks guys, I couldn't have done it without you!

…

The Revenant

Chapter One

By: Luna

…

Kagome stared out of the car window with dull eyes - eyes that had once been a bright, brilliant blue, but now were full of shadows and secrets and a dull, haunting pain. Mrs. Higurashi pretended not to see; she chose to see only what she wished to. She wanted to believe that her daughter was finally normal after years locked away. She wanted to believe that her daughter would smile at her, just like the old days, and tell her how much she loved her.

But that wasn't going to happen. Not now, and not ever again.

She had betrayed her daughter - was _still_ betraying her daughter by sending her away to live by herself in the country. But how can any family expect to have an unbalanced person in their household? Dad was getting older and sicker, and Souta had to focus on his studies; they dropped since Kagome was released.

She looked over at her daughter quickly, noting the slim, delicate build, the long lashes, the dark, beautiful hair. None of it mattered anymore. Kagome could be the most beautiful woman in the world, but as of seven years ago she could officially consider herself unmarriageable. Mrs. Higurashi wanted to cry at the grandkids she would never see, but even she wouldn't be that cruel to her only daughter.

She cleared her throat uncomfortably, shifting her eyes away when her daughter turned that blank, expressionless face towards her, and lifted those dull, expressionless eyes. "Ah…"

She shifted in her seat, clutching at the steering wheel a little bit tighter. "The family home should be quite comfortable for you. Its been in the family for generations, dating back to the start of the Meiji Era. It's quite old, but we placed forty percent of the grant money we received from the government into your own separate account at the local bank. If you choose to, you can redecorate the house to your liking."

Kagome stared at her mother for a moment longer before looking back out the window without a word. She didn't want to speak to that woman. In fact, she hadn't - not since she locked her away when she was fifteen. She would take the money that woman was giving her; she needed to eat, after all. But she also felt that _that woman _owed her. Owed her for her disbelief, her betrayal, her abandonment.

Her eyes traced the tree tops, the urge to smile almost lifting her lips. There was so much green here in the mountains, so much nature to lose herself in. She didn't know if _that woman_ was being considerate in placing her out here, or if she did it simply out of shame so that her neighbors won't have to see the crazy child, and she could continue on with her life pretending she never had a daughter.

Most of her family members were doing that anyways, she silently acknowledged. Souta hadn't even stopped by the hospital when his mother came to pick her up. The car had already been loaded with belongings from when she was a child; all his mother had to do was pick her up and drop her off in the middle of nowhere.

The only one that believed her had been her grandfather. A long believer in demons and ghosts alike, when she told him she was being stalked by a one he had immediately tried to help her. Prayers, ofuda's, incense; her grandfather had tried them all. He had also been the only one to write her while she had been locked away, sending her flowers and gifts and silly little notes from one crazy person to the other.

He once told her that the only difference between his crazy and her crazy was that he was old and was allowed to get away with it. His last words to her had been, "It's okay. Fight it, beat it, and come home to us. I love you, be safe."

But when he started developing Alzheimer's, he had forgotten all about her and her demons. Kagome didn't blame him; if she had a chance to forget, she'd take it.

"We're here!" _That woman _said with false cheer, quickly sliding out of the car as if she couldn't bear to be in close proximity any longer.

Kagome blinked, focusing outside, staring at the old, three story house a moment before getting out. That woman hadn't been lying about the house; the timber frames, with no decorative molding or trimming, characterized a traditional Japanese home.

To the side of the main house she spotted separate structures with signs labeling each one; the kitchen, the bathroom, and the toilet. She wondered if she would have to leave the house every time she had to go to the bathroom; hopefully by now the house was updated enough to have a kitchen and bathroom installed inside.

She followed the woman to the _genkan_, the formal entryway, and slipped off her shoes inside the foyer before following her into the house. Even the furnishings were traditional; sparse and portable. Most of the furniture was low to the ground, and she knew what wasn't there was stored in the _oshiire_, the storage area. She looked outside; one of the rice paper doors were slid open to the veranda, showing a view into the gardens. When her mother left, she'd go explore.

It was a very beautiful spot, if a little too traditional and clean for Kagome's tastes; she was done with all things sterile. She wanted to feel like herself again; the fifteen-year-old she used to be had been careless with her belongings; leaving items draped over the couch, the kitchen chairs, her desk… She found that woman in the (thankfully) modern kitchen, having spotted her briefly, the sliding door slightly cracked open, and she paused and listened to her conversation.

"So this is the crazy one you mentioned?" The soft voice of the female realtor reached Kagome's ears.

"Yes. But don't worry, she's not violent or anything… it's not that kind of schizophrenia." Kagome's mouth twisted at the term.

"What happened? I mean, how did you know something was wrong…?"

"She stared hearing voices," Mrs. Higurashi admitted, in a voice small with embarrassment and shame. "She said that there were people who followed her all the time, people that no one else could see."

"Ghosts?" The realtor asked, her voice hushed with morbid curiosity.

"I don't know. But she said that there was this one, a man, who used to visit her at night and… and…" Mrs. Higurashi hesitated, breathing in deeply a moment before continuing. "She said he molested her. We put bars on her windows, even though her room was on the second floor. We installed a security system when we could hardly afford it. I had doctors check her out for physical signs of abuse but… there was nothing."

"She stopped taking baths, because she said the man would watch her as she undressed. She stopped talking to her friends, going to school… she would stay in her bedroom and she wouldn't leave." The woman kept whispering. "Only Dad would visit her…"

"She would get violent sometimes. Plates would get smashed, china broken..." She continued, and it seemed to Kagome that she had been holding this in for a while, or maybe she just wanted to talk about her crazy daughter, but now that she started she couldn't seem to stop, the words falling over themselves in their haste to escape the woman's mouth. "She would yell out odd phrases, or her eyes would follow things across the room that weren't there. And then…"

"Go on, dear," The realtor urged, her voice sounding soothing, yet greedy; Kagome would bet every dollar in her bank account that she would spread rumors about Crazy Girl Kagome within five seconds after walking out of this house.

"She started screaming one night." Mrs. Higurashi whispered. "Screaming and screaming. I ran to her, so scared - only to find her thrashing on her bed, scratching all over her arms and wrists, her face, completely naked and… and…"

"I couldn't believe her when she said that man raped her. I was _right there._" Whispered Mrs. Higurashi. "I was watching her do these things to herself. And she was crying, _begging_ me to believe her but I…" She cleared her throat, and after a long moment continued. "She stopped talking after that. She stopped eating. Stopped doing everything. I needed help, so I called the Tokyo Psychiatric Hospital, and they took her away."

The realtor made soothing noises in the back of her throat. "There, there. There was nothing you could do; she was obviously a danger to herself and others." She paused, then continued on with a light, airy laugh. "She's completely safe now, isn't she?"

"Oh yes," Mrs. Higurashi assured. "The hospital tells me she's been responding well to her medication, and she hasn't had an episode in over a year."

"Oh good," the lady sounded relieved, though she was trying to cover it. "Then you have no need to worry."

"Of course not. I hired a local nurse to check up on her every now and then. I'll get the report on whether or not she had another episode."

"Well, I'm sure that nurse will come in handy. This town has quite the reputations for ghosts, you know." The realtor said, clearly wanting to talk about it.

"Oh?"

"Oh yes, you see a couple hundred years ago there was this great fire, and-"

Kagome chose that moment to slide open the doors, watching as both older women jumped guiltily. She stared long and hard at both women, letting them know she heard every word, before slowly sliding it shut.

She left without a word, turning back the way she came as she tried to force the dark, furious rage that bubbled up at her mothers confession. She didn't truly mind if the locals heard of her; she was used to being considered crazy, and with the stories it would help keep them away from her.

She unloaded the car quickly and without fuss; because of the sparse furniture, she had more room to pile all the boxes in the living room. When her watch alarms started beeping, Kagome sighed in relief. She pulled her purse out of the front seat of the car and a bottle of water, and took her scheduled medications.

Though not one to admit it, she loved her medicine. It made her not care, made all the anger and the sadness and the isolation she felt just drift away in a sea of lucidity. It made it to where, if she did see something she wasn't sure was there, she didn't have it in her to care. She didn't _want_ to care; she held the childish belief that if she pretended she couldn't see them, then they couldn't see her. So far that philosophy has held true.

A half an hour later, Mrs. Higurashi found Kagome carrying the boxes from the living room into a room she claimed as her own, and Kagome paused when she noticed the woman shifting uneasily in the entryway.

"I'm, ah, leaving now, Kagome." She said, fiddling nervously with the strap of her purse. "Is there anything else you need?"

Kagome only stared at her, silent. Mrs. Higurashi gave a tight smile and started backing away towards the door. "All right, well, you have the home phone number, call me in case of an emergency. Oh, yes, there is also a nurse who lives down the road, who will be there in case you need to talk or to… anything, I guess."

When the silence stretched tight between them, Mrs. Higurashi gave her final nod. "Okay. I'll be off now. Stay safe."

_Stay safe._

Kagome wanted to laugh.


	2. Chapter 2

I do not own Inuyasha. I never have, and never will.

Thank you everyone for your kind and encouraging words! This story will be the first time I've dipped my toes into dark waters, and I'm glad that everyone has enjoyed what I have so far!

For those of you who have been asking, this story will be updated once a week. Thanks again!

…

The Revenant

Chapter Two

By: Luna

…

Kagome moaned in her sleep, tossing back and forth as nightmares assailed her. Ghostly whispers, touches in the dark, and a face she couldn't see - following her, _always_ following her. And a memory, so stark in her mind, so vividly tattooed in the part of her soul where she never wanted to look again; that dark whisper, his dark touch…

"_You will never escape me, Kagome." _He had whispered into her ear on _that night_. _"I'll always find you. You are mine!"_

She woke up screaming. Her night shirt was nearly soaked through, clinging to her damp skin. She shivered, curling up into a small ball in the middle of her futon, hugging her knees to her chest.

Why? Why was that memory coming back to haunt her after all these years? She tried to remember if she had taken her medication before bed - she didn't think she did. She had been so tired after moving all those boxes, and then unpacking almost everything that, when she found where the futons were stored, she pulled one out and collapsed on it.

It was a mistake. She should have known better than to forget to take her medicine. With a brief glance at her watch, she decided it wasn't too late to take the missed dose. She stumbled to the bathroom, shivering in cold, and slapped her hand against the wall and groped for the light switch.

Light illuminated the small bathroom, and when Kagome glanced up into the mirror she screamed.

Her body jerked back, her feet slipping on the tile and she fell on her tailbone hard. She sat there gasping, waiting, but when nothing happened she shakily rose to her feet and stared into the mirrors reflection. She stared at herself, her heart beating irregularly, and wondered if she really had gone crazy.

For those first few seconds, she could have sworn there was someone _else_ staring back at her.

Shaking her head with sigh, she turned on the faucet and splashed her face with cool water before filling up a glass. Counting out her medicine, she swallowed them with a shudder of relief. She didn't want to dream anymore. Not tonight.

Not ever.

Walking back to her futon, she collapsed once again, pulling the blanket over her and willing herself back into a dreamless sleep.

Kagome groaned as, a few hours later, her alarm clock vibrated with a constant shrill beep, and she slapped the ground a few moments before her hand connected with it, and silence filled the room. She stayed like that for a while; her face pressed into her pillow, her hand over the clock, until she lifted her head and blearily stared at her clock.

It went off an hour early.

Kagome narrowed her eyes, sitting up with the clock held between both hands. There was no way she set the alarm early. Her life was one giant schedule; she showered, dressed, ate, and took her medications at specific times of the day, with _no_ exceptions. She did not like to deviate from schedule; if she missed even one event, she was a wreck the rest of the day until she was able to go to sleep and start over the next day, entirely on schedule.

So how was it early? She flipped it over to stare at the back before reaching for the winder button to set it back to her original time. Perhaps something snagged on it during the move?

Shuddering, Kagome laid back down, her eyes haunted, and she stared at the face of the clock until the sun started to shine through the rice paper doors, and she watched the big hand click its way to the top of the hour, and smiled when she heard the alarm. It had been the move. It had to have been.

Quickly, she got up, leaving her futon where it was as she hurried into the shower. She only allotted herself fifteen minutes worth of shower time; she only splurged on the weekend and used the bath for thirty. After dressing, she ran a brush through her hair quickly, then she set about unpacking the rest of the boxes.

She froze when she opened up a box and a broken picture stared back up at her. The whole family; Gramps, that woman, Souta, and Kagome, were standing in formal kimono under a large cherry blossom tree, huge smiles on each of their faces.

The glass was shattered over her face.

It had happened long before _that night_, only back then she assumed she had merely dropped it, and had told herself she would replace the frame next allowance, but she had forgotten. She caressed the faces in the photo briefly, her lips tightening when a sliver of glass jabbed at her finger tip, and she dropped the photo back in the box and shoved it aside. She's look at that one later.

After pulling out the glass and getting a band aid, Kagome went back to her task. Another box revealed all of her childhood knickknacks. A stuffed purple unicorn, a tray of broken sea shells - the broken ones had always been her favorite. She pulled out a box of carefully wrapped blown glass, a gift Souta had given her for her fifteenth birthday. Briefly, she wondered whether it had been Souta or his mother who packed all of her things.

She looked around the room, choosing a low table to place all of her special items. The unicorn she tucked under the covers on her futon. She went through the boxes that had her old clothes, wondering why they bothered packing these; she was an adult now, and she couldn't fit into clothes she had worn as a child.

She put them to the side, reminding herself to drop the clothes off at the nearest homeless shelter. The only box remaining was the one from before; the one that held all of her pictures. She didn't want to open it, didn't want to see those memories of her past life. She knew, however, that if she didn't open that box, it would act like the white elephant in the room. She might as well sort through them, at least to take them out of the box and store them somewhere else.

Picking up the broken frame again, Kagome stared down at the photo another moment before slipping it out, placing the photo in one pile and the frame in the other. The next couple of picture frames were before the episode seven years ago; Yuka, Eri, and Ayumi linked together and beaming into the camera.

Souta at a soccer game, a picture of intense concentration on his face, with his foot swung back as he was about to kick the winning point. She was in almost all of them; with her friends, with her family, some by herself. There were a few clumsily taken landscape scenes, and she decided to keep those out; not all of the pictures were bad memories or unwanted reminders.

As she dug deeper, she noticed that she started smiling less and less. Shadows were forming under her eyes, and there was an increasing look of worry and fear in her expressions. In one of them she wasn't smiling at all, merely staring into the camera solemnly. She picked up the last frame, and her fingers quivered a moment before she steeled herself.

She was crossing her arms, hugging herself almost anxiously, looking over her shoulders into the shadows. Kagome squinted at the photo, following the direction her eyes were pointed towards. There, barely visible in the shadows, was a faint outline of a man.

She dropped the photo, watching as a corner of it landed first and broke, the glass shattering. Kagome stared, stared so hard her eyes started to burn and her lungs felt tight. Suddenly she was ripping at the frame, the photo, picking it up to run out of her room and down the hall, into the kitchen, and lit the gas stove with shaky fingers.

When a flame was lit she held the photo above it, and then dropped it into the sink to watch it burn.

When it was nothing but ash, Kagome turned on the faucet and watched as it floated down the drain. She didn't care if that was the only proof that something had been following her. She wouldn't approach any of her family members with it regardless, and she wanted nothing of _that man _in her house.

Perhaps she was merely seeing things. Maybe she only imagined a figure standing there because it made her feel better. She gripped the edge of the counter, bowing her head so that her bangs shadowed her eyes, and she gritted her teeth as she attempted to exert control over her emotions.

She didn't like feeling so out of control, all because one little picture made her remember what she tried so hard to forget. Her doctor had attempted to help her differentiate between reality and illusion, tried to make her be normal again. But she still believed, deep down to her core, that what happened had been _real_. It wasn't make believe. What kind of girl would she have been to have dreamed something like that?

Taking a deep breath, she straightened, then shut off the water with a determined flick of her wrists. It was all in her imagination. She hadn't seen anything, and she almost had a panic attack over nothing. Using breathing techniques taught at the hospital, Kagome turned and left the kitchen. Yes, she thought with a silent sigh. It had all been in her head.

Later that night - and early morning - her clock once again let off its shrill alarm. She picked it up, glaring at the time.

_3:33 a.m._ Kagome froze, a remembering a line from a book she recently read._ The Hour of the Wolf._

_"The Hour of the Wolf is the hour between night and dawn. It is the hour when most people die, when sleep is deepest, when nightmares are most real. It is the hour when the sleepless are haunted by their deepest fear, when ghosts and demons are most powerful…"[1]_

Frightened, she let it slip through her fingers, watching as it rolled a couple of inches away, before she burrowed under her blankets and hid with her head underneath the covers.

She didn't go back to sleep.

* * *

><p>[1] The marketing tagline for a 1968 Ingmar Bergman horror film entitled <em>Hour of the Wolf<em>.

It's the time between 3:00 and 4:00 in the morning.

So, in case you're wondering, yes, I did make up the fact that Kagome read that tagline in a book.


	3. Chapter 3

I do not own Inuyasha. I never have, and never will.

Warning: This story will continue to get steadily darker after this chapter, so readers beware.

And please remember to enjoy!

…

The Revenant

Chapter Three

By: Luna

…

"_Do you believe in dreams?" Her therapist asked. She was an older, beautiful woman with kind eyes - and the only woman Kagome trusted… to an extent. _

_Kagome looked away. "No."_

"_Do you believe in happiness?"_

"…_No." _

"_I think you should."_

"_Why?"_

"_Everyone deserves to be happy."_

"_That's not good enough."_

"_Then… I guess you could say I like your smile." It was a lie. She had never seen Kagome smile; because Kagome never did._

Kagome opened her eyes, wondering why she was remembering her last session. She sat on the deck outside of her bedroom, drinking in the green and listening to the wind move through nature. She liked the sound of the wind; the rustling leaves, the flower petals that would dance through the air, defying gravity.

She liked the peace nature provided. She liked the _silence_. In Tokyo there was just too much white noise buzzing in her ears. For the first time in what seemed like a very long time, she truly felt alone, and it was wonderful.

She had gotten rid of her alarm. She told herself it had been a one-time occurrence, and something that wasn't likely to happen again. Her body was used to waking up at a certain time; after experimenting she found out that she would wake up more or less at the same time she usually did.

This morning had been odd… when she had awakened; her shoji door had been open. She did not remember opening it before she went to bed - perhaps she slept walk? Either way, she took it as a sign to explore the gardens, something she had yet to do. In the week since she had been here, she only explored downstairs. There was something about the upstairs, something in the way the shadows fell upon the walls that made her uneasy…

Sighing, she wondered when she would stop imagining monsters in every corner. She set her cooling tea aside and slipped on her sandals, intent on exploring the gardens. Hesitating a moment, she stepped off the deck, hearing her feet crunch against the gravel, before setting off in the direction of the pond.

Blinking, she marveled at the masterpiece before her. It was a Tsukiyama type garden, with its sloping hills and stone waterfall, with wisteria in the middle of a pond on a manmade island, its boughs so heavy that its purple blooms fairly dipped into the water. There was a stone lantern on the island at the base of the bridge, and beyond that a stone bench sat at the base of the largest wisteria tree.

She wasn't sure whose garden the landscaper had tried to replicate, but at the moment she didn't really care as she followed the circular path that led around the garden, to eventually take her to the center where the island was. How could a home exist with such beauty? And why did Mrs. Higurashi never live here? This house was obviously expensive, probably worth enough that would support the shrine for _years_ - and yet, this was the first time Kagome had ever seen it.

Why?

Frowning, Kagome absently tugged on her earlobe, a gesture she was hardly aware she did when she was thinking. As she walked along the path, it took her deeper into the garden, that the island was temporarily blocked from her view by another man-made hill, nearly smothered in green foliage.

When it came into view again, Kagome turned a distracted eye towards it before she looked ahead again, and froze. Slowly, she turned her head back, and didn't know if she should be happy or afraid that she hadn't imagined the man standing in the middle of the island, wearing a pristine white kimono, a large, strong hand reaching up to cradle the delicate blooms hanging above him. Who was he? What was he doing _here_, of all places? But more importantly...

Was he _real?_

A figment of her imagination?

She didn't think so; she didn't think she was that creative, and the man standing on the island was a work of art. Beautiful, with long incandescent white hair. His skin was smooth and milky, and she stared dazedly where the sleeve of his kimono slipped near his elbow on his upraised arm, and the twin violet stripes that slashed down towards his elbows and disappeared within his sleeve. They were such a striking contrast against the paleness of his skin that she could only continue staring at him, her mind panicking, and it took her a while for her mind to register the fact that he was staring at her.

Shakily, Kagome patted her pockets, belatedly realizing that she left her medication in her room. It wouldn't have mattered. It took at least a half hour before the drugs kicked in, and by that time curiosity would've gotten the best of her and she would have already made her way towards the stranger.

Like she was doing now.

She couldn't get to the island; she still had to travel the path all the way back around to do that. But she stopped by the ponds edge and continued to stare at him, almost afraid to blink. If he disappeared, she didn't know what she'd do. She finally found _peace_. She didn't want to find out she went crazy after all.

"You're being rude." His voice, a deep, cool baritone, interrupted her dazed thoughts, and she blinked before she could control the motion.

When he was still standing there, she sagged in relief. Then she said, "And you're trespassing. Who are you?"

The man merely harrumphed and sat down on the stone bench, tucking his hands into the opposite sleeve of his kimono when he crossed his arms. "Nobody lives here." He told her, closing his eyes and looking to the world that he instantly dropped into slumber.

Kagome's lips tightened in vexation, and she felt her eyes cooling as the first stirrings of anger kindled in her belly. "_I_ do. I moved in last week. This is my home now."

"Hnn." He cracked one eye open and studied her.

When he continued to stare at her she shifted, feeling uncomfortable. "Will you tell me your name, please?"

She instantly hated the way she sounded; pleading, uncertain, as if she weren't the one in control. The man harrumphed again and closed his eyes. "I am Sesshoumaru."

Kagome waited a beat, frowning. Was that it? Did he expect her to call him something as personal as his first name? Scowling, tapped her fingers in a restless beat against her thigh before she straightened. "My name is Kagome."

He didn't open his eyes as he spoke. "Last name?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Higurashi."

That had him opening his eyes at last, and when he stared at her again she had the odd thought that he was looking at her for the first time. She could not discern what color his eyes were from the distance, but the intensity of his gaze was felt, and she shivered, rubbing absently at the goose bumps that rose on her arms.

"I should have known," he murmured, though Kagome barely caught his words.

"What do you mean?" She asked, actually taking a step back when his eyes jerked up to glare at her, clearly not expecting her to have heard him.

"You look like your ancestor. Almost identical, in fact." He replied, looking away from her to frown across the pond, looking more thoughtful than disturbed.

Kagome felt that chill again, felt it tingle its way down her spine before dread started to pool in her stomach. There was something not right with him, she thought dreadfully. How could he know that? Was she dreaming? Hallucinating?

He flicked his eyes towards her and sighed irritably at her frightened expression. "Have you not explored your own home? On the second landing there is a room off to your left; it has artifacts and pictures of your ancestors."

"How do you know that?" Kagome asked, nearly inaudibly.

Sesshoumaru heard her anyways, somehow. "I have visited. It has been empty; this Sesshoumaru has felt no need to curb his curiosity at such a house. It used to be open to the public, after all."

That explained the pristine look of the garden, as if someone had cared for every painstaking detail of it. "I haven't explored upstairs yet," she admitted softly. "There's something…"

Sesshoumaru glanced at her sharply when she trailed off. "What is it?"

Kagome shook her head. "It's nothing, really. My mind likes playing tricks on me, that's all."

"Hnn." He looked away from her, his expression guarded, his frown thoughtful.

Suddenly, Kagome needed to get away. Anywhere, any place; she just needed to get there _right now._ "Um." She cleared her throat, taking a step away from the pond. "Please enjoy the garden."

She fled without another word.

Panic was thick in her throat, choking her, but for the life of her she couldn't figure out _why_. At the last bend in the path, she shot a furtive glance over her shoulder, and then froze all together when she noticed the island was empty.

He was gone. Like he had never been there to begin with.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Tsukiyama styled gardens** often copy famous landscapes from China or Japan, and they commonly strive to make a smaller garden appear more spacious (Japan Guide). This is accomplished by utilizing shrubs to block views of surrounding buildings, and the garden's structure usually tries to make onlookers focus on nearby mountains in the distance (Japanese Lifestyle). By doing this, it seems that the garden has the mountains as part of its grounds. Ponds, streams, hills, stones, trees, flowers, bridges, and paths are also used frequently in this style (Japan Guide).


	4. Chapter 4

I do not own Inuyasha. I never have, and never will.

Thank you for your reviews, you guys are awesome!

…

The Revenant

Chapter Four

By: Luna

…

Kagome sat at the base of the stairs, glaring into the shadows of the second landing. Why was she so scared to go up there? She didn't understand it herself, but she had the feeling that the minute she walked beyond the first step, she'd be trespassing along a barrier she should have kept herself out of.

"There isn't anything there, you retard." She muttered to herself, and forced her legs to straighten, shaking out the little tingles she got in her feet from staying in a kneeling position for so long.

She hesitantly walked a few steps up the stairs, and when the house didn't fall around her ears she took a few steps more. When she reached the top of the stairs, she automatically looked to her left, but shivered and chose to look in that room last. Instead she went to the very end of the hallway so she could start from the back and work her way forward.

The first door she came upon was a linen closet, and she laughed at herself for being so jumpy. The next room was smaller than her bedroom, but big enough to be considered a guest room. After opening a few wall panels, she discovered the closet and the small room the futons were stored in.

The next room looked like… a tea ceremony room? No, she realized, because traditional tea ceremonies were held in a separate building outside the house. This must be a practice room. Her fingers trailed along the small stack of _chakin_, small cloths used mainly to wipe the tea bowl, then lifted to trace the boxes that held the _chawan_, the labels clearly telling you which bowls were used for thick and thin tea.

She frowned as she stared down at the _natsume_, the small lidded container in which the powdered tea is placed for use in the tea-making procedure. She hesitated only briefly before she opened it, sighing in relief when she found it empty. It would've been uncomfortable for Kagome if there had been powdered tea inside.

The whole set up looked as if somebody took painstaking care to have each item set up for a guests viewing pleasure. There was a _cha-dansu_, the chest built specifically for storing such items, and it made Kagome wonder why none of the tools were stored inside it. It was almost as if… as if someone recently removed them for use. Which was impossible, since Kagome had been here for a week and she had been the only one here, and this was the first time she explored the upstairs. She didn't know if Mrs. Higurashi's realtor friend, the one that set up the house prior to Kagome's arrival, displayed the items or not, but Kagome wanted to believe that she had. Who else would go through all the trouble…?

The _chashaku _and the _chasen_, the tea scoop and whisk, were off to the side, but Kagome didn't touch them as she slowly backed out of the room, sliding the shoji doors shut with a decisive click. There would be no reason for her to go in there again. Ever.

The next room looked to be some sort of storage room. The entire room was empty except for the far wall, which was layered completely by _sendai-dansu_, used to store kimono. There had to be at least fifty drawers, and as Kagome crept closer, she was in awe of the beautiful iron work of the chests; the chests alone must be worth a fortune.

Sliding open one drawer, she gasped at the kimono folded inside, its brilliant color and intricate design leaving her speechless. One drawer, then two, then nearly all of the drawers were open, and Kagome sat on the floor in front of the chests with a dazed expression on her face as she stared at the brilliant kimono's that were stored with such loving care.

This house was worth billions. _Billions! _How was it that Mrs. Higurashi managed to keep this hidden for so long? And her Grandfather - had he known? Had her family been rich this entire time, and nobody truly knew? Growing up Kagome had wanted for nothing. She never went hungry, never a year went by when she wasn't able to have new clothes.

So why did they live on a shrine instead of in this masterpiece?

Closing all the drawers, her mind raced yet could come up with no answer. When she left the room, she was barely paying attention when she opened the door across from the room Sesshoumaru claimed held all of the Higurashi's relics, and froze when she came across a low Japanese table with little white tea cups set around it, and a woman with Kagome's face beaming back at her as she held up a cup with tea inside it.

"Hello, my dear. Would you like some tea?"

-N-

Mrs. Higurashi looked over her shoulder warily, wondering if she was imagining things. She couldn't be sure but… all day, she had the strangest feeling, as if someone was constantly watching her. She clutched her groceries tighter as she hurried towards her car, and didn't stop until she was safely inside her car with the door locked.

Souta was sitting in the passenger seat, his expression bitter and brooding; he was _always_ like that, nowadays. "So!" She said cheerfully, forcing her smile to at least seem natural. "I picked up your favorite snacks, and I thought I'd make oden tonight!"

His young face immediately twisted and he looked away. "I don't want oden."

"Well, I know winter is over, but that doesn't mean we can't still enjoy it." She told him as she maneuvered through traffic, until she was able to park at the base of the shrine.

Souta jerked his head towards her, his brown eyes almost hateful. "Why are you pretending she never existed? That was _her_ favorite dish - and I don't want it!"

Mrs. Higurashi sighed wearily. "Souta, you don't understand…"

"No, _you_ don't understand!" He cried out, fumbling with his seatbelt. "She asked for your help and you just sent her away! You didn't even let me say goodbye. _I hate you!_"

She dropped her forehead against the steering wheel, feeling tears prick her eyes when he slammed the car door and raced up the shrine steps. How could he understand? Souta was only fifteen; the same age as Kagome when she first started going crazy. How could any mother allow one child to poison the mind of another?

Just now, Souta basically told her that he believed Kagome's delusions. He had been so young… what if he started claiming he saw things, heard things, and that people were out to hurt him? He was so young and impressionable… What if, even now after all these years, he started spouting such nonsense just to spite her? She didn't want to send him away too; he was the student Kagome never was, the athlete that her husband had once dreamed of.

Getting out of the car, her muscles creaked, and she felt _old_. This was just a phase, wasn't it? All children went through their rebellious years and claimed they hated their parents. Right…?

"_Tsk, tsk, such a sorry mother you are."_

Mrs. Higurashi swung around with a startled cry, swinging her arms that held the groceries around her like a weapon. Nobody was there. Her bosom heaved, her heart racing a mile a minute, and as she looked around her she forced herself to calm. _Nobody was there._

Breathing in deeply, she shakily made her way upstairs. When she closed the front door behind her she breathed a sigh of relief, relaxing slightly as she made her way to the kitchen to set down the grocery bags.

"Good morning, Dad!" She chirped brightly, smiling a little too widely at her aging father.

Grandpa Higurashi was staring blankly at the table, but at the sound of her voice he raised rheumy eyes to stare at her. Mrs. Higurashi opened her mouth to speak, before her breath caught in her throat as she watched her father look at something over her shoulder… his eyes following it as it moved about the room.

She tried to follow his gaze, but there was _nothing there_. Goose bumps rose on her arms, her heart started pounding again, and she had to focus on breathing because she was suddenly finding it very difficult to do so. When her fathers eyes paused at the stairs, as if whoever he was staring at disappeared up there, his body seemed to deflate, and he turned his blank stare on her again.

"He's come for her." He told her, his voice weary. "He's returned."

"Who, father?" Mrs. Higurashi whispered, her whole body trembling. "Who's returned?"

But Grandpa Higurashi wasn't listening anymore. He was staring at the table again when the first picture flew off the wall. Then another, and another, while Mrs. Higurashi could only stare at the destruction of her home, panic choking her, making her limbs like lead and immobilizing her.

"_Where is she?"_ A malevolent voice hissed in her ear. _"Where is she?"_

"I-I… who are you talking about?" Mrs. Higurashi choked out, even as fingers started clamping around her neck. Her groceries were thrown off the table as if someone swept their arm across the surface in a fit of rage.

"_Your daughter. Where is she? I know she's out of that prison."_

Mrs. Higurashi closed her eyes, pain, regret, horror, sadness… she didn't know what she was feeling, but the only coherent thought in her mind was, _I'm so sorry, Kagome._

And then she whispered, "I don't have a daughter."

The being in her kitchen screamed with rage, and the fingers tightened around her throat even more, and she opened her eyes to the hazy image of a man in a white kimono, his hair dark and long and unkempt, his face twisted in a mask of rage and hate. Just when she thought she would lose consciousness, that she would _die_, the expression in the demons face froze, and the look in his eyes turned inward.

Horror clogged Mrs. Higurashi's throat when a sadistic smirk stretched across its face, and she heard the words, _"I see you."_ Whispered in a mocking, sing song tone before she was released, and she collapsed on the kitchen floor, gasping for breath.

"Mom?" Souta cried out, rushing to her side. He must have been in the well house; it was his favorite place to hide out; Mrs. Higurashi was grateful, because then her son wasn't hurt. "Mom, what happened? Grandpa?"

But Grandpa wasn't listening. He was merely staring down at the table top, the only silent, untouched spectator sitting in the midst of the destruction.


	5. Chapter 5

I do not own Inuyasha. I never have, and never will.

To MissTeak, who is much admired! (^_~)

THIS CHAPTER WAS REPOSTED TO FIX SOME ERRORS! Please reread!

…

The Revenant

Chapter Five

By: Luna

…

Mrs. Inoue, the realtor and an old high school friend of Mrs. Higurashi, peeked into the foyer of the Higurashi estate. She had once wondered why her old friend would send her daughter to a cursed house, but after meeting the daughter she understood perfectly why Higurashi-san wanted to leave Kagome locked far away from the public eye. Yet, at the same time…

Mrs. Inoue sighed, a little sadly. She couldn't imagine locking her child away, even if they had paranoid schizophrenia. "Kagome-chan? Are you here?"

She crept forward a little more, looking around the spacious living room and sighing in envy at the antiques. There were a few extra items here and there that came from Kagome's belongings, but for the most part the interior was the same as before. Had the child nothing to call her own…?

She looked into the kitchen, the walked along the long hallway towards the end, where the darkened staircase led upstairs. She peeked up, and frowned when she spotted Kagome's dark head at the top. "Kagome-chan? Are you okay?"

Shivering at the chill, she made her way up the stairs, and hesitantly touched Kagome's shoulder when she reached the young girls side, watching her with concern. Kagome was standing in front of the open doorway, her chin lowered enough so that her bangs shadowed her eyes, covering her expression. Mrs. Inoue looked inside the room the girl had been staring in, blinking at the tea set up, and the broken china shattered at Kagome's feet.

It looked as if the child had dropped the tea right on her feet, and there were small scratches where the delicate china had cut her. "Oh no," tsked Mrs. Inoue, and she knelt down and started cleaning up the shards of broken china. "What happened here?"

"Can't you see her?" Kagome's voice; faint, soft, and haunted, floated up to Mrs. Inoue's ears, and the older woman blinked, and looked back into the empty room.

"Kagome-chan…?" The room felt cold, and she shivered when she felt as if something literally moved through her, and she rubbed at the goose bumps on her hands absently. There was nothing there; this house was old, and likely very drafty.

Kagome barely moved, but when Mrs. Inoue looked up, she noticed the girls hands were closed into fists, and her face was scrunched up as if in pain, her eyes screwed slightly shut. She hesitantly touched Kagome's hand. "Kagome-chan, are you okay?"

"Of course you can't see her." Kagome said hollowly, opening her eyes to stare blankly into the room. "Because she's not really there, is she?"

Feeling her heart clench, and Mrs. Inoue kept the broken pieces of pottery in her hands as she turned to head back downstairs. "I'm going to put on some coffee," she told her, ignoring her racing heart. "Come downstairs when you're ready."

She left without waiting for a response, and quickly disposed of the broken tea cup before starting a pot of coffee. She opened up the refrigerator, and her jaw dropped in dismay. There was _nothing_ in there! She opened a few cupboards, and anger stirred in her breast at the barrenness of the kitchen. She found a few cans of soup, one tin of coffee and one bag of tea, and a few plastic utensils.

Whether or not Kagome was crazy, Mrs. Inoue didn't know. She did know, however, that no child should be abandoned under such circumstances. She obviously wasn't capable of taking care of herself. Had she had any time outside of the hospital before coming here?

Mrs. Higurashi didn't know how lucky she was to have children. She didn't understand the pain of losing a child; that wrenching in your heart when you feel that child leave this world for the next. Mrs. Inoue only had one, a son. Mrs. Higurashi had two, and she was throwing one away. Just because one had problems was no reason to condemn her.

With an angry flick of her wrist, she snapped open her cell phone and called the grocery store, ordering fruit, milk, cereal, and a few meat products, along with a months supply of bottled water. She ordered express delivery, and she was assured it would be delivered within the half hour.

By the time Kagome wandered into the kitchen, she was only able to stare as the other woman bustled around the kitchen, putting food away. Mrs. Inoue turned and smiled at the blank look of surprise on Kagome's face, and patted the seat of a barstool. "Come in, my dear, have some coffee."

Kagome's eyes widened when Mrs. Inoue opened the refrigerator door to pull out the milk, and there was actual food inside. What was she to do with all that stuff…? The only cooking skills she had were ones she honed when she was fifteen, and since that was a little rusty she stuck with soup.

Kagome sat, a little warily, remembering the woman's remarks the first day she moved in. If Mrs. Inoue noticed her wary expression, she ignored it, and instead busied her hands by pouring a cup of coffee and sliding it in front of Kagome.

Kagome silently accepted the cup of coffee, her eyes widening when she took the first sip. "It's good," she said, surprised.

Mrs. Inoue smiled at her cheerfully. "Thank you. I brought in some groceries, since your kitchen seemed a little depleted."

Kagome studied her over the rim of her cup. "Why?"

"Why what, my dear?" Mrs. Inoue asked, slicing some bread and popping it in the toaster.

"Why are you being so nice to me? I'm the crazy child, you know." Kagome told her, watching her reaction.

The older woman paused, her hand still on the lever of the toaster. Her smile seemed frozen in place for a moment before she turned back to Kagome, a determined expression on her face. "No, you're not. A crazy person wouldn't admit they were crazy. They would just be convinced about their... delusions."

"I'm not sure I'm _not_ convinced." Kagome murmured as she took another sip of coffee. She ignored Mrs. Inoue's startled look and continued, saying, "They say I have schizophrenia, but I'm stable enough to be released with normal people like yourself. But I saw something that wasn't there today. A woman, offering me a cup of tea. But she wasn't really there. Would you still say I'm not crazy?"

"Well... I wouldn't know." Mrs. Inoue hesitated, then shrugged and said, "This house _is_ haunted, after all."

Kagome frowned. "Haunted?" She had first assumed she had been followed by a ghost; years of staying in the mental hospital had her convinced that she was just crazy. Sometimes she _felt_ crazy - and that meant something... right?

When the woman placed a plate of lightly buttered toast in front of her, Kagome stared down at the slice of bread mutely. It's been so long since someone took care of her… She didn't know why the realtor was being so nice to her, and though she was a little suspicious as to why… she wouldn't turn it away. It felt like a luxury.

"Um," she cleared her throat. "What makes you think this house is haunted, Inoue-sama?"

"Hmm," the older woman tapped her fingers restlessly against the countertop. "A long time ago, a fire raged out of control on this side of the mountain. It burned down a lot of houses, and killed a lot of people. There were many influential families in the area, and their entire line died in a single night. Your family, the Higurashi's, were able to continue their line through your father, who lived in Tokyo."

Kagome's eyes were wide as she listened to the tale. "How did the fire start? Forest fires aren't that common, after all. Not here."

"Well, about fifty years ago, your grandmother fell in love with a local boy from one of their competing families. They were very big in the tea world, after all, and were famous for performing tea ceremonies." Her fingers stilled for only a moment before they resumed their restless beat. "He was a younger son, and being their only daughter, her parents were not pleased with the match."

"So what happened?" Kagome asked, her coffee momentarily forgotten.

"They decided to match her with the younger son's older cousin. She rebelled, refused to marry a stranger, and they locked her away upstairs in this house, with only her newly betrothed as her visitor." Mrs. Inoue leaned forward on her elbows, propping her chin on her linked fingers. "She was desperate to escape, but her parents would never let her leave upstairs. Eventually she married the cousin and had a son, your father. They sent him to Tokyo for schooling. But she was miserable, for apparently her husband proved to be very violent."

It was silent for a moment, the only sounds were short, minute clicks of a clock that hung above the kitchen stove. Then Mrs. Inoue continued. "She felt the only thing that would get her out of there was an emergency. So she set fire to her rooms."

Kagome gasped, horrified. "She killed her own family?"

"Herself as well, though not on purpose, I'm sure." Mrs. Inoue shrugged unconcernedly. "Who knows? Anyways, the fire spread so fast that she was unable to escape. As this house is far away from town, no one noticed the fire until it killed the Higurashi's competitors, who live up the mountain. Luckily a few family members had been out of town that night and escaped the fire. However, her lover had not survived. Many say they still see them lost in the woods, two lovers separated by their families hate, calling each others name but unable to find each other."

"Just like Romeo and Juliet," Kagome sighed. She looked down at her hands, only noticing then that her fingers were clenched so tightly around her coffee mug that her fingers were turning white. She made herself relax, laying her hands flat against the counter. "So I really saw her? I'm not going crazy?"

Mrs. Inoue hesitated, then pat her hands quickly. "I don't know the circumstances in Tokyo. Maybe you had a nervous breakdown; it happens sometimes. I don't know, all I do know was your mother was wrong in what she did to you. You didn't deserve what she did. Your mother -"

"She's not my mother." Kagome cut her off, her voice curt and her eyes bitter.

Watching her for a moment, Mrs. Inoue sighed and started clearing the countertop. "Well, you are entitled to your own opinion, my dear. Maybe someday you'll change your mind, but in the mean time, if you need anything call this number," she tapped a slip of paper where she scrawled a number and stuck it on the refrigerator. "It goes directly to my cell phone, and I always have it on."

Impulsively, Kagome reached out and grabbed the older woman's hand. "Thank you," she managed to say. "Really. Thank you."

Blinking in surprise, Mrs. Inoue used her free hand to pat Kagome's. "Anytime, my dear. Anytime."

-N-

Kagome woke up with a start, her heart racing, her whole entire body sweating profusely. She looked around her darkened bed chamber, wondering what had disturbed her rest. Her hand groped for her alarm clock before she remembered that she had gotten rid of it, so she groggily lit up the face of her wrist watch.

_3:23 a.m._

Chilled, Kagome turned and burrowed back into her blankets, her eyes staring off into the darkness. When she felt a cool breeze gently touch her face, she looked over to notice the shoji doors leading outside were open. She closed them. She _knew_ she closed them. She rose on shaky feet, and just as her fingers touched the door to close it, there was a flicker of light in the gardens.

She stared, her heart starting to beat hard and fast. Without thought she walked to the end of the deck and slipped on her sandals that were still outside from the day before, and followed where she last saw the light. She followed the path in a daze, and before she knew it stood in the middle of the bridge arching between the mainland and the island, and she stared at the back of a man with silver hair.

His entire body was glowing, as if darkness didn't touch him, and as the breeze moved between them his hair moved with it, and Kagome noted dully that she could see _through_ the silvery strands, as if he was just an illusion, or a holographic image sent to torment her. When he started to turn, her heart actually _hurt_. She didn't want him to be Sesshoumaru…

He wasn't.

When he turned fully, her eyes gasped at the triangle dog ears perched atop his head, as well as the wide golden eyes that looked at her with such love.

And then he said, "Kikyo," and reached for her.


	6. Chapter 6

Standard disclaimer applies.

Thank you for all the reviews! Everyone's support really helps motivate me!

…

The Revenant

Chapter Six

By: Luna

…

Kagome woke up groggily, cradled in someone's arms. Fearing what she'd see, she kept her eyes closed as she tried to take in her surroundings. She heard the rustle of the leaves above her as the wind blew, and the sweet fragrance of the wisteria. There was the gentle lap of water against the shores.

And somebody who smelt like pine, forest, and something _wild_, breathing softly above her.

"How long are you going to keep pretending? You are not as light as you appear."

Kagome's eyes snapped open, and she stared up into the blank eyes of Sesshoumaru. She had wondered, briefly, if one would be able to detect emotion in his eyes from up close, and that maybe the fact that he seemed completely expressionless was due to the fact that she stood quite a distance away from him. It wasn't true; she could read nothing from him.

"What are you doing here?" She asked belatedly. She absently accepted his hand when he helped her up. Then she frowned and looked around. "What am _I_ doing here?"

Sesshoumaru raised a brow. "You were passed out in the dirt. This Sesshoumaru assumed you felt more at home there."

Kagome yanked her hand away with a hiss of fury. "I don't need to hear that from you. You may leave this property now, you jerk, and take your look-a-like with you."

Something in his eyes flickered, but it was gone too fast for her to interpret. "This Sesshoumaru's look-a-like?"

"Yeah," she dusted her bottom off, frowning down at her pajama bottoms for a moment before her eyes trailed over to the wisteria. "I came here last night because…"

Because why? She could hardly remember. "Somebody was calling to me." No, that didn't sound right. "Somebody was… Somebody was here. I saw him. I thought it was you. But when he looked at me he called me…"

What had it been…?

"Kikyo." She murmured, her voice low and perturbed. "He called me Kikyo. He tried to touch me but…"

Sesshoumaru watched her silently as her worried blue eyes frowned at the wisteria. "Hnn. I heard you were crazy; I guess the rumors are true."

"Hmph." Kagome turned her back to him with a haughty sniff. She might have been offended, but she was just too used being called crazy and delusional to care. She was staring up at the wisteria, wondering why he chose here of all places to show up. Sesshoumaru… but that other man, too. The dead one. Or maybe she really was hallucinating; her imagination created a man based off the story she was told by Inoue-sama?

The sad truth was, she didn't know. She didn't think she ever would. For all she knew, Sesshoumaru was a product of her imagination, and she was just imagining the entire meeting out of… what? Loneliness? That was a little too depressing to contemplate, so with a frustrated sigh she turned back towards him and marched with firm, determined strides.

Sesshoumaru was watching her approach with that irritable brow still raised, and she had the pleasure of seeing his eyes widen almost in surprise when she reached up and yanked on a handful of silver hair.

It was smooth as silk, and cool to the touch. As she blinked down at the silky handful, she watched in wonder as light was absorbed and reflected, and she stroked her thumb over it and marveled. She looked up at Sesshoumaru and let out a startled cry when her eyes met his mere inches away from her face.

"I'm sorry!" She cried out, and dropped the hair as if it burned her and leapt back. "I just… wanted to see if you were real and…"

He stared at her for a moment longer before sighing. "You really are crazy. Keep in mind that if you lay a hand upon this Sesshoumaru again, you are likely to lose it."

She stared at him as he crossed the bridge, and when she realized that he was actually leaving she ran after him. "Wait! Where do you live, anyways?"

He didn't even turn around. "Up the mountain." A rude wave of his hand. "That way."

Scowling, Kagome watched as he disappeared, then marched away towards her house. She felt cold and dirty, and she desperately wanted a bath.

It was only late that very night that she had forgotten to take her medication that morning, and that it was entirely plausible that she had imagined that entire episode… and perhaps Sesshoumaru, too.

-N-

The view of the mountains were breathtaking.

The green was so vivid, so lush, that with the sun shining down on them her eyes started to tear. Hugging her knees, Kagome stared with troubled eyes across the garden where the wisteria grew. What was so special about the wisteria? There had to be some kind of reason that she kept imagining things on that island.

She was just so tired… she continued to wake up in the early hours of the morning, haunted by dreams she couldn't remember, and unfamiliar faces she wasn't sure she'd forget. Sesshoumaru's… the man that looked similar to him, and the woman that looked identical to her. Why? Why was this happening to her?

Why couldn't they just leave her alone…?

With a weary sigh, Kagome closed her eyes, leaning her forehead wearily against her knees as she felt sleep slowly drag her under…

"_Kikyo!" Turning, she saw the same man who found her last night, and felt herself tremble at the warm smile on his face directed at her. _

_She rose, and to her surprise she found herself smiling back at him. She looked down, surprised to find she was wearing an ornate kimono. It was dark violet with silver butterflies floating across the silk, and her obi was black. Her hair was pulled up in an intricate knot, held together by ornate hair pins that twinkled out of the corner of her eyes when the sun hit it._

"_Inuyasha," she said warmly, walking with more grace than she had ever possessed and held her hands out for him to take._

_Inuyasha wore a red kimono, vibrant in its color with no design to distract the eye. His hair was silver, and the fuzzy dog ears atop his head twitched in excitement as she came closer, his eyes focused on her, and only her. She loved him; she would _always_ love him. She loved that look in his eyes when he stared at her, as if she were everything to him - just as he was everything to her. _

_When he took her hands, his were warm and hard with calluses; after all, he wasn't the one who conducted the tea ceremonies. She loved his hands; hard and strong and all hers. _

"_Inuyasha," she said again. "What are you doing here? You know my parents forbid us to see each other. Father said they would do something drastic if they catch us together again."_

"_I know, I'm sorry. But I just couldn't wait until tonight to see you again. Kikyo…" Fingers, tipped with claws, stroked her cheek. Then, with sudden ardor, Inuyasha pulled her closer, his arms holding her close, her ear pressed over his heart. "They can never separate us, Kikyo, never! Not even death can keep us apart…"_


	7. Chapter 7

Standard disclaimer applies.

I'm sorry for the wait! But this is for Freya, who never stopped giving me not-so-subtle hints to start writing this again. I'll try to keep the updates coming!

...

The Revenant

Chapter Seven

By: Luna

…

Kagome woke up feeling as if she was on a mission. First, she decided to start setting her alarm clocks again so there was no chance for her to miss taking her pills. Second, she decided to take a look in the only room in the house she had yet to explore. She dressed as if she were going into battle; blue jeans, boots, a snug black turtle neck, and a baseball bat.

The bat was Souta's; she wondered why it had been mixed in with her stuff, but at the moment she could only be grateful. It gave her a sense of security, and that more than anything was what she craved most.

But maybe… She hesitated at the base of the stairs. Maybe she should look up her ancestors first. Get the lay of the land, so to speak. If there really were ghosts in there, she wanted to be as prepared as possible. She also knew that most people would consider her crazy for what she was doing. Carrying a baseball bat and a detailed list of her ancestors characteristics as protection against ghosts that may or may not exist sounded ludicrous even to her, but she couldn't help it.

If there was nothing up there, she would be able to fall back on being crazy. But if there _was_ something up there… then maybe she wasn't so crazy after all. She booted up her computer, then squinted at the log in screen uncertainly. What had been her password…? It had been years since she had logged into the computer. Her therapist had this sleek, very thin laptop that was apparently all the rage in this modern era that Kagome was released into, and now she wondered if maybe she should use the money Souta's mother left for her to buy one.

Setting the baseball bat outside the kitchen, she walked over to a cupboard next to the oven and pulled out a phone book, then called for a cab. She should have enough cash to make it into town, and then she could stop by the bank and access her account and withdraw more if she needed it.

She waited nervously outside the front gates to the estate. At first, she sat down on the side of the road, but quickly jumped up to pace. _I can do this._ It was true that it had been years since she interacted with the public. But she had many people to talk to at the institution, and she could handle it. _I can do this._ The cab arrived, and she quickly got in before she could change her mind.

"What'll it be, miss?" The cab driver was staring at her from the rearview mirror, his eyes bright with curiosity.

She wondered if he was cursing or rejoicing about the fact that he saw the crazy girl up close and personal, and was relieved that there was a glass wall between them. She was sure that he would call his friends as soon as she paid his fare about how he survived the encounter.

Or maybe she was just being paranoid and she should tell him where she was going.

"I was hoping you would be able to take me to an electronic store in town. I'm not sure where anything is, but I need to buy a laptop and hire someone to install the internet." She kept her voice level and calm, despite the way her heart was beating a mile a minute. She was grateful for the turtle neck that would cover her pounding pulse that would have been a dead giveaway about the state of her nerves to anyone who was observant enough.

"Aye, miss. That'll be Saitoh's Electronics. He can come by and hook it up for ya, too."

Kagome offered him a ghost of a smile. "Thank you. That's where I'll go then."

"Yes, miss."

The cab ride was silent, for the most part. The driver tried to strike up a conversation now and then, but every time Kagome would give open ended comments that did not invite further talk and eventually he gave up. He drove slowly through town, and Kagome eyed the stores as they passed. A gas station, a café, a book store, and a library. Every other store seemed to be either empty or closed. It was definitely a small town, she thought with a wry grin. Her eyes strayed to the library, and she wondered if it held any old newspapers she would be able to go through.

Finally they stopped in front of a grubby looking shop. The windows had a light coat of grime, and she had to squint to see the various equipment lined up on shelves. She paid the driver quickly and got out with a hurried thanks. He tipped his hat to her and drove off.

The door chimed when she walked through, and the main lobby looked empty. "Hello?"

She walked further in, peering in between aisles in consternation. Huffing, she turned around to leave, and squeaked when she almost ran into an old man standing directly behind her.

The old man glared out of faded blue eyes. "What do you want?"

Blinking at his rudeness, Kagome narrowed her eyes. "Nothing with _that_ kind of attitude."

"Hmph." The man snorted, then started walking to the counter. "Won't get nothin no where else."

Kagome glared at the back of the old man. He looked older than her grandfather, she thought with a scowl, and had the attitude of a cantankerous bear. Nerves forgotten, she propped her hands on her hips and glared at him. "Look, all I want is a good computer and someone to hook up the internet. Is that too much to ask?"

"Hmph. You an' them city girls, can't last for nothin without your internet." The man grumbled. He already started to jot something down on an invoice.

"I'll have you know I lasted seven years without internet." Kagome told him, then wondered why she even bothered. She shouldn't argue with a stranger, especially one of his age. For all he knew he'd croak if she raised his blood pressure any higher.

"Hmph." He pointed to a box near Kagome and the display she was standing by. "Yer kind of skinny. Do you have muscles to pick that up, or you need a man to do it?"

Her hackles rose, and she stooped down to pick up the computer with a snarl.

Somehow or another she found herself sitting next to the old man in his junker of a truck as they drove back to her house, her arms crossed petulantly and a permanent scowl on her face. When she pointed at the long drive leading up to the house, he had stopped his car and just stared at it for a moment, long enough to have Kagome turning her head, transferring her glare to him instead.

But the retort died on her lips at the haunted look in the old mans eyes. "Sir? Uh, Saitoh-san? Are you okay?"

Blinking, Saitoh scowled at her again and started up the long drive. "Hmph. None of yer business."

His country dialect was starting to get on her nerves. What a rude old man, she thought. Rolling her eyes, she waited until he stopped in front of the house and jumped out without preamble. She grudgingly showed him inside, and had him sit down and wait until she finished carrying all of the boxes inside. He directed her to take the computer out of the box, then when she had it set up where she wanted it, he went to work hooking up cables.

"Would like anything to drink?" She asked, not being able to be rude enough to not offer him anything.

"Tea." He grunted.

Kagome rolled her eyes and left. She took her time filling the kettle with water, and waited in the kitchen until it started whistling before she pulled down cups, tea, and arranged a little plate with tea cakes on it.

Saitoh grunted again in thanks as he picked up the tea, then booted up her computer. "You gotta add your info here." He said, then moved out of her way.

Kagome didn't say anything as she did what he said, and it was only until the computer stopped asking her for her information did she turn back around to face her guest. All the cakes and tea had been demolished. "Hey! You drank my tea, too! What the heck?"

"Hmph. You weren't drinking it. It was getting cold." Saitoh moved back to the computer and started pulling up screens. Since Kagome wasn't sure what he was doing, she picked up the remains of the tea and took it back to the kitchen. As she was leaving it she bumped into Saitoh out in the hall.

"Connections good. I'll send you the bill." He started making his way to the front door.

Kagome crossed her arms and leaned up against the wall, scowling at his back. Before he reached the front door, he hesitated, then turned around to stare at her. He studied her as if he was trying to memorize her features, and there was a sad, almost wistful look on his face. "You look like her, you know."

Kagome's skin started to tingle. She was pretty sure she knew who he was talking about. He was certainly old enough to have known her. "Oh?"

Saitoh's lips twisted for the first time in what might have been amusement, but his face was so wrinkled and leathery that it was hard to tell. "Feistier. Hope you don't have a yen for arson like she did, tho."

Kagome's brow rose. "Not particularly."

"Hmph." Saitoh turned away. "Call if you have any trouble."

As the door closed behind him, Kagome wondered if he had been talking about the computer… or something else.

…

Two hours later, Kagome was still staring at the sleek 32" flat screen computer monitor, certain that the old goat had milked her for all she was worth. It was probably the most expensive computer in the shop, she thought with a scowl. She stared at the icons on the monitor suspiciously. Google Chrome? Firefox? What were those? Where the heck was the Internet icon? She didn't want to call Saitoh so soon after he left to inform him the kind of idiot she was, so she randomly started on all the icons until a screen popped up with a search engine.

She typed in the towns name plus the word "fire", and blinked when a couple dozen results popped up in less than a second. "Definitely not like the old days," Kagome muttered, then scrolled down until she found what looked like the towns site.

She tried finding anything relating to the fire, but other than the words "…the 1902 fire destroyed nearly seventy percent of the town…" she didn't find anything useful. She jumped to another site, delighted at the quick response. Eventually she came across an article that looked useful.

"_The Higurashi Family is proud to announce the engagement of their daughter Kikyo to Naraku Furusawa, of the Furusawa Family."_

The hair at the nape of her neck stirred, and she had to repress a shiver. She focused on Kikyo, skirting around the name Naraku, and searched for her instead. A brief mention in an old gossip rag caught her attention.

"_Scandal reigns over the house of Higurashi. Higurashi K is pregnant, but claims the child is not that of her husbands or known lover, IT. Society has yet to see HK out in society since the new laws, caused by a certain K Toshiko, that restricted women's rights more than ever. HK claims she had an affair with a servant boy. Nobody knows for certain who the child really belongs to or which servant…"_

And:

"_Higurashi Souta has finally made an appearance. Having looking nothing like NF or her local lover, the Furusawa's have fired the rumored lover of HK. However, said servant has yet to be found. HS has been sent to Tokyo to HK's family shrine. HK has not been seen since the birth."_

Then the last, more horrifying excerpt:

_The bodies of Kikyo Furusawa, formerly Higurashi, and Inuyasha Taisho, of the prominent Taisho Family, have been recovered. Witnesses claim they watched as K threw a lantern against the walls of her shoji doors, immediately sparking a fire in the Furusawa household that could not be contained. K had somehow escaped the blaze, for her body, along with that of IT's, were found in the private chambers of IT on the night of the new moon. Both victims had died of smoke inhalation. It has been said KF's family ripped the body of KF from IT, and buried her in a place where the spirit of IT would never find as a final punishment for KF's infidelity to both her husband and her family. 108 victims had been killed by the fire. No doubt the surviving locals agree with such a punishment for so grievously wounding her neighbors."_

Though she found the use of initials pointless, since everyone knew who they were reading about, the gossip paper was the closest thing she could find relating to the fire. Didn't Mrs. Inoue say that Kikyo set fire to her rooms? Didn't that mean that _this_ was the house that would have had to burn down…? But no, Kagome thought, rereading the screen. By that time Kikyo had married Naraku Furusawa, and would have moved in with his family. She had killed off all _that_ side of her family, as well as Inuyasha's.

It had been summer, Kagome thought as she looked at the date of the post. The season where everything was especially dry. When she set fire to her rooms, she created a maelstrom of destruction that killed over a hundred people. Had she really been so miserable that she learned to hate those that surrounded her? To the point where she felt like death was the only option? Had she hated the Furusawa's so much that she didn't care if they died because of her?

Though tragic, in some ways Kagome agreed with the locals; she had gotten what she deserved.

She looked at her watch, then cursed at the amount of time spent on the computer. She blinked, and it was only then that she realized her eyes burned slightly from staring so intently at the screen, and when she stood her back ached from slumping over the keyboard. She cursed, rolling her shoulders. That Google Chrome was addicting. She probably could have sat there a few more hours googling.

Padding to the base of the stairs, she stared up at the lengthening shadows. She should probably try again in the morning when there was more natural light… _No._ She couldn't be a coward. It was only a little after four; Souta was probably getting out of school by now. Perhaps he was already home. If she waited any longer, it really would be too late to go up there, because by then all of her courage would have faded along with the sunlight.

Taking a deep breath, she started up the stairs. When nothing happened she started to breathe a little bit more easily, and by the time she reached the door on the left she was positive nothing was going to happen. She opened the door and stepped inside.

The walls were covered in photos, all black and white and looking like they had been taken anywhere between the late 1800s and early 1900s. There were _choba-dansu,_ chests that were more for display than practicality, but when Kagome opened the drawers she found old sewing kits, journals, and what looked to be like very old dime novels. There were a lot of photos hanging on the walls as well as propped on the dressers. Many looked to be from the late Meiji Era, where men sat stiffly in their hakama worn over kimono, with pale faced women standing in elegant _iromuji _styled kimono, usually worn for tea ceremonies.

She found one of Kikyo, wearing a white wedding kimono. Kagome felt sorry for her; she looked no older than fifteen. Though beautiful, she looked utterly miserable. Her face betrayed no emotion, but it was the eyes, Kagome thought. They looked as if they were _beseeching_. Even on the tiny photograph, her eyes appeared luminous, full of tears. As she watched, one steadily fell down Kikyo's cheek…

Kagome recoiled from the photo, and told herself she had imagined it. She looked one more time, and was assured it had all been her imagination. Kikyo's face looked cool and composed, if a little sad and solemn, but not tearful. The next photo looked as if it had been a business meeting, and her eyes zeroed in on the very white hair of Inuyasha Taisho.

He had been a handsome man, she thought. In a very young, high school crush sort of way. They had both been so young… But, the more she stared at him, the more she thought he looked like Sesshoumaru. She wondered if he was a descendant of Inuyasha. She moved on to the only other picture of him in the room, where he stood with the rest of his family in front of the Higurashi house, obviously there for a visit. The father looked larger than life, with strong, handsome features and long white hair pulled back in a high tail. She wondered if all men in the family grayed prematurely, or if it was a birth defect.

In front of the father stood a petite woman. She was elegantly beautiful, and with a happy, serene look in her eyes. She stood next to Inuyasha. Behind Inuyasha stood another man, but for the life of her she couldn't make out his features. It was as if he moved his head when the picture had been taken, creating a blur where his features should be. All she could tell was that he was tall, nearly as tall as the father, with the same snowy white hair.

Kagome focused on Inuyasha again; he was, after all, the main character in her research. She frowned. She could have sworn he had been looking at the camera before; now it appeared his eyes had shifted, looking off towards her right, his expression sad and haunted. Kagome followed his gaze and gasped.

Kikyo and her new husband stood in front of an unfamiliar house. Naraku had a cold, cruel face, and had his hand placed possessively on the shoulder of Kikyo as he grinned cruelly down at his wife. Kikyo's expression was hollow, but her eyes were looking towards the left towards… Inuyasha?

Horror struck Kagome as she stared into Kikyo's face, and slowly, ever so slowly, Kagome raised her eyes back to Kikyo's husband. But he wasn't staring down at Kikyo anymore.

He was staring at _her_.

She heard his whisper…

Over the roar in her ears, she heard the phone ring, then the answering machine clicked on.

"Kagome? Kagome!" It was Souta's voice. "Mom got attacked by - by _something!_ Are you okay? Kagome!"

She wasn't listening. She could only stare, horrified, as she replayed the voice from her darkest nightmares, a whisper carried to her on wings of terror.

"_I see you…"_

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** K Toshiko, as mentioned above, full name is Toshiko Kishida, and was one of the first Japanese feminist. Kishida set off on a speaking tour addressing huge crowds all over Japan. She was a powerful, dynamic speaker. She often was harassed by the police, and once was jailed. Her words, nonetheless, were heard by thousands of women who found in them encouragement to become politically involved.

However, women lost most of the gains they had made when the ruling elite reacted negatively to their pressure by enacting the most conservative and oppressive model of the family in the Civil Codes of 1898. Men were enshrined as head of the family with absolute authority over family members. One provision stated: "Cripples and disabled persons and wives cannot undertake any legal action." The Codes also attacked traditional means of birth control by promoting high birth rates. The patriarchal family model thus became a part of the state, not private, policy which extended neoConfucian principles to all women, not just to the upper class.


	8. Chapter 8

Standard disclaimer applies.

The Revenant

Chapter Eight

By: Luna

…

By the time Sesshoumaru found Kagome, he suspected a few days had passed since the last time anyone had come by the estate. At first he had walked around the gardens searching for her. She always seemed to be around whenever he trespassed, but he couldn't find her this time. He stopped, frowning, then tilted his head to the side and scented the air.

Underneath the scent of flowers, was the faint taint of… fear.

Stepping towards the house, he could determine she was alone in the house, though there was a stale scent of an unfamiliar male darkening her doorstep. Frowning, he slid open the front door and stepped inside. He was instantly bombarded with the same male scent, though Kagome's was more prevalent and thickened with fear. He crinkled his nose, wondering when she last had a bath, and stepped forward into the main room to search for her.

The front drawing room was pristine, with the exception of a light coat of dust. Everything was in its proper place; her shoes were lined up perfectly on the front stoop, her sandals exactly an inch apart from her tennis shoes. The furniture was tucked away neatly; the low dining table's pillows were perfectly set around the table, with two pillows on each side set four inches apart from each other. For someone who was obviously OCD, he wondered why she didn't dust.

He glanced at the notes on her desk quickly, and almost missed what she had written down in neat little characters on her notepad. How had she found out about Inuyasha? She would have had to look back decades in order to find his name. Searching her notes, he was relieved that his name was not mentioned. He studied the room once more, looking towards various hallways shut away by the shoji doors before his gaze rested on the stairs leading to the second level.

She was there.

He walked up the stairs, pausing a moment when he noticed the open doorway to his left. He looked inside, and felt the hair on his arms raise. He slowly walked in, the icy cold in the room almost pushing him out. He looked at the pictures, his eyes coming to rest on his family. He was glad he changed out his family photo for a blurred picture that hid his face, yet at the same time, as he stared the old photo he almost wished he hadn't so he'd be able to fully see his family as they had been… before the fire.

Taking another step forward, he glanced down as he heard glass crunch underneath his boots. There was a picture lying face down, with the shattered glass scattered all around it. Once again he wondered how an OCD woman could make a mess and leave it. Stooping down, he picked up the frame.

It had been shattered over that bastard Naraku's face, the picture having actually been torn from the force of her taking the frame and slamming it down over his face, but below the rip he could still see that smug, sinister smile gloating over Kikyo's head. Sesshoumaru dropped the photo again and deliberately ground his heel over the face of that monster. Sesshoumaru had taken great pleasure in killing that particular spider.

Sweeping his eyes once more around the room, he left. He methodically searched every room, frustrated when he couldn't find her immediately. Her scent was literally soaked into the house by now, yet her actual person remained elusive. He was about to resort to searching through the attic, when he heard the faintest sound of a woman crying. He stood in front of the linen closet for one contemplative moment before he slid the rice-paper door open. Kneeling down, he studied the top of Kagome's head with some consternation.

"Woman." Sesshoumaru waited, but she never lifted her head from being buried in her bent knees. Her arms were wrapped around her knees and hugging them to her chest. Her whole form was shaking, rocking back and forth as she cried to herself. Her dark hair was in need of washing, and she was wearing crumpled clothes that he suspected she had been wearing for a few days. He reached for her shoulder, touching her gently.

"He's coming for me." Her soft voice, thin with terror, reached his ears easily.

Sesshoumaru's frown deepened. "Who are you talking about?"

"That man." She said, her trembling increasing. "That monster. He's going to come after me again. And I can't… I'm not gonna survive it this time. I won't."

He remembered the shattered frame. "Naraku?"

Kagome's head lifted then, and she was as pale as the sheets she was hiding in, her eyes wide and rimmed with dark bruises from lack of sleep, and they were flooded with tears. Her voice was hollow. "Yes. I'm sure that's his name."

"Naraku's been dead for over a hundred years." He thought about the rumors surrounding her, and slowly withdrew his hand. "You really are crazy."

"Yeah, probably." Her listless eyes stared past him down the hall, and she repeated, "Yeah, I probably am."

After a beat of silence, Kagome let out a sigh, utterly weary. When she stood and started walking away, Sesshoumaru scowled after her. "Where are you going?"

"To take a shower. You can stay if you'd like. I think I still have tea left."

Sesshoumaru stayed, though he wasn't quite sure why. He dusted her drawing room, tidied her kitchen, and by the time she stepped back into the room freshly washed, he had two cups of tea waiting. She smiled wanly at him as she accepted her cup without a word.

"What was that?" Sesshoumaru demanded, glaring at her through the steam of his tea cup.

"What was what?" Kagome asked calmly, blowing on the steaming liquid before taking a sip.

Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed. "You do not need to act like you are stupid, you do that naturally enough. What did you mean when you said Naraku was coming for you?"

Kagome looked down at her tea. Sesshoumaru's eyes unerringly travelled to a drop of moisture travelling down her neck, disappearing into the dark purple top that was clinging to her skin. When she started speaking, he made himself meet her eyes. "What did you say?"

She was frowning at him. "Do you promise not to laugh or make fun of me?"

A quirked brow was her only answer.

Kagome sighed, her eyes drifting away from his. "Seven years ago… I was attacked."

"By Naraku?" Sesshoumaru's voice was dubious.

"Yes, by him. But he… he wasn't really there. I don't know how he… But he did. And they sent me away when I asked for help." Her eyes met his, tired and utterly defeated. "Will you help me?"

Sesshoumaru opened his mouth, then hesitated – and immediately regretted it.

The lights of the house winked out, and glass shattered as the tea cup went flying out of Kagome's hand, and she was dragged screaming out of the kitchen by something not even Sesshoumaru could see.


	9. Chapter 9

Standard disclaimer applies.

Warning: Adult situations and sexual assault. Do not read if uncomfortable.

Forgive any grammatical mistakes. I only was able to do a quick run through before I ran out the door.

…

The Revenant

Chapter Nine

By: Luna

…

Sesshoumaru flew after the screaming woman, and for one disorienting moment he actually lost her. It was as if she vanished into thin air… he stopped, tilting his head to the side, and listened. Far above, pitiful whimpers could be heard, and he ran up the stairs to the attic. When he reached the threshold, he stopped and stared into the room before him, quite unable to believe his eyes.

Kagome was pinned to the wall like a crucifix, and dark smoky shadows swirled around her, and if he wasn't mistaken, hands caressed her in indecent places. An image appeared; a smoky apparition of the hanyou that killed his entire family in a single night. His hair swirled around him as if coaxed by invisible winds, and his red eyes were slanted and sinister, his lips spread into a dark sneer.

"The prodigal son has arrived, as they say." Naraku said mockingly. "To what do I owe the pleasure, Sesshoumaru? You're interrupting me."

Sesshoumaru's lips curled in disgust, while every nerve ending tightened painfully, scenarios flitting through his mind like quicksilver as he tried to figure out how to slay a demon that wasn't even there. "You've always had the habit of picking up disgusting hobbies, hanyou. It seems your taste for rape hasn't diminished over the years."

Naraku's face contorted in rage. "Rape? I'm not raping her. See?" He reached back a hand and groped her breast hard, cruelly, and when Kagome whimpered in pain his crazed smile only widened. "See? She likes it. She likes me. She lied to me all those years ago. She didn't mean what she said. She loves me. She _loves_ me. _She_ loves _me!_"

Sesshoumaru stepped closer, silently noting how Naraku's shadow didn't touch the youki he held around him in a protective shield. It looked like a thick miasma, and Sesshoumaru knew all about poison. He was infecting Kagome, the girl who looked so much like her ancestor, and he was worried by her shallow breathing, the dullness in her eyes, and the pallor to her skin. She was breaking – _again_.

He sliced the air with green tipped claws, and gritted his teeth as the hanyou disappeared, an echo of mocking laughter in his wake. Kagome dropped from the wall, and Sesshoumaru was there to catch her, to hold her close, to check her pulse and make sure she was still breathing, even if only briefly. He held her tightly against his chest, memories assailing him roughly, even as _her_ voice drifted through his mind like a gentle breeze.

"_Sesshoumaru… He's going to kill me. Do you believe me?"_

He hadn't been her lover; he had been her friend. He had been the guardian over both her and Inuyasha's secret love. She had been such a gentle, loving creature… the picture her family painted about her in the local papers had been a lie. She wasn't wicked, vengeful, or cold.

"_Do you believe me…?"_

No, he hadn't. He knew of Naraku's capacity for violence, but he also knew that there wasn't much he could do about it. Kikyo had been Naraku's wife; if Sesshoumaru had taken her away, knowing Inuyasha would follow his love, his family would be ruined, his mother's head always bowed in shame. He also knew Naraku had been obsessed with her, enough to keep her locked in her rooms, never to escape, never to have _friends_… until she reached out to a servant boy, and had a brief indiscretion when her loneliness became too much. Sesshoumaru made sure her son was safe – but he hadn't been there for her.

He had failed her.

He wouldn't fail her again.

Kagome wasn't Kikyo, he knew that. Just like he wasn't Inuyasha, and history _would not_ repeat itself.

He would make sure of it.

…

Kagome awoke from her nightmares, and stared up at an unfamiliar ceiling. The air smelled clean with only the subtle scent of sandalwood. She sat up slowly, staring dumbly down at the white sleeping yukata she wore. Looking around, she blinked when she realized she was sleeping in the spare bedroom of her house.

She crept out, her black hair falling over her shoulders as she peeked around corners, and tiptoed down hallways as she followed the slight clinking of glass. Nearly the whole house had its walls and bedrooms separated with shoji walls, except for when one went upstairs, and certain parts of the outside walls; sounds travelled easily when someone was downstairs, and if she was right, then someone was in her kitchen… doing dishes?

She opened the sliding door to the kitchen, not knowing what to except, and could only stare at the back of Sesshoumaru in his white kimono, with her blue apron tied neatly around his front.

"Um," she wasn't sure what to say. The events of last night were hazy, only bits and pieces of her nightmare came flitting through her brain every now and then. It was the way with some nightmares, she knew. Sometimes when she woke up from a bad dream, she'd remember the sensation of being scared, but be unable to remember exactly what happened. "Why are you in my kitchen…?"

He paused. "You do not remember?"

She scratched the back of her head in confusion, while her eyes were drawn to a traditional Japanese breakfast that was spread on the kitchen table. Her stomach grumbled, and she made her way to sit down. "Not really. I'm sure I just… over dosed…"

Sesshoumaru turned to see her face turn completely ashen, and her hands started shaking so badly the chopsticks she had picked up rattled to the floor, having slipped out of her fingers unnoticed. "Oh God," she whispered. "Oh God. It wasn't a dream. He's back. He _saw _me. I led him right to me!"

"What are you talking about?" Sesshoumaru demanded, turning to her fully.

"The pictures," she whispered. "He _looked_ at me. And then he came!"

Sesshoumaru contemplated the plate in his hands, then turned and set it down before facing her again. "I will not allow him to get to you again."

She laughed harshly, her eyes hard like diamonds but as brittle as glass. "How? He's _dead_, isn't he? How can you kill a ghost?"

"I do not know." He answered flatly. "However, you do have the internet, I assume? The best way to know any enemy is to do research."

"I hate research," she muttered, looking sullenly down at the food growing cold before her. "Look where it got me. A whole miserable piece of history from crazy relatives, and a ghost that has a sickening obsession for me because of who-knows-what."

Not for you, Sesshoumaru thought. For her. Naraku was too gone to realize the difference. Kagome was different in some ways, but in some ways she was the same. While she was sleeping he went through her things as he cleaned her house, and he studied the pictures she had with her family and friends, before Naraku found her. She had been a lively, beautiful young girl – just like Kikyo. He also noticed her eventual withdrawal; the blank, haunted eyes, the lack of smiles, and the way her photographs eventually went from being full of her friends, to lacking in any.

Kagome was still strong, Sesshoumaru thought, studying her silently as she started to pick through her meal. She had many horrible, life changing events happen to her – but she was still here, still eating, with enough energy to want to be stubborn with him. Kikyo had broken long before her death, and Sesshoumaru had been unable to do anything about it. He wouldn't fail her granddaughter; he couldn't. He owed his family that much for his failure.

After breakfast, they went to her computer, and Kagome started typing into the search engine. "I'm still amazed at how fast this thing became," she told him as result appeared in less than a second. "Before I was institutionalized, we had dial up internet, and searching for things took forever."

"You do live in a modern age," Sesshoumaru told her dryly. "A lot of things can change in seven years."

"Hmm," she murmured, clicking on a link labeled 'wikipedia'.

"'Hungry ghost,'" she murmured. "'A concept in Chinese Buddhism and Chinese traditional religion representing beings who are driven by intense emotional needs in an animalistic way. The English term has often been used metaphorically to describe the insatiable craving of an addict.'" Kagome looked sickened, but she continued. "'…They will scare you, and then they will feed on your energy and fear."

Kagome looked away, her skin pale, and covered her mouth with a trembling hand.

"I would not get sick on the keyboard, if I were you." Sesshoumaru warned her.

Kagome cast an irritated look at him before she continued on with her search. "_'Gaki_ are the spirits of jealous or greedy people who, as punishment for their mortal vices, have been cursed with an insatiable hunger for a particular substance or object. Traditionally, this is something repugnant or humiliating…"

Again she trailed off, and Sesshoumaru knew she was remembering what Naraku had done to her. When she went back and continued searching, and here she froze, reading quickly.

"What is it?" Sesshoumaru asked, leaning to read the computer.

_Revenant: _A revenant is a visible ghost or animated corpse that was believed to return from the grave to terrorize the living.[1] The word "revenant" is derived from the Latin word, revenans, "returning", from the verb "revenire"; in French, "revenant" means "coming back", from the verb "revenir", meaning "to come back".

"'Stories of revenants were very personal, always about a specific individual who had recently died and had a number of common features.'" Kagome recited dully, leaning back away from the computer.

Sesshoumaru froze, remembering Naraku's last words as Sesshoumaru ripped his heart out, while black blood was coughed out of his mouth. _"I will return… there's no force in the world that will be able to stop me."_

"It's because of _her_, isn't it?" Kagome asked, subdued. "I look just like her, I've seen her face in the photographs. "He's here for revenge, isn't he?"

When Sesshoumaru remained quiet, Kagome turned to look at him. There was something in her eyes that made the hair raise at the back of his neck, as if she were seeing him for the first time, and she saw something he didn't – or couldn't.

"You know him, don't you, Sesshoumaru?" She whispered sadly, and he didn't like that knowing look in her eyes that made her seem too sad. "What does he want? Tell me, Sesshoumaru. What happened all those years ago…?"


	10. Chapter 10

Standard disclaimer applies.

The Revenant

Chapter Ten

By: Luna

…

_Sesshoumaru bowed in greeting to Furusawa-sama, Naraku's aging father. Sesshoumaru heard of the rumors surrounding the old man; if it was true the old man had tuberculosis, Sesshoumaru didn't want to be near him; he held his breath as he was allowed upstairs to Kikyo's quarters. Kikyo just had her child, and Sesshoumaru was there to make sure no harm was made to the baby as it was bundled up and taken to the city, to be guarded from Naraku. _

_The servant boy, Saitoh, had also disappeared. Sesshoumaru wasn't sure if he escaped from Naraku's wrath, and he was too busy as it was with his own family to take the time to protect the servant boy. All of the Furusawa's were cold; he hoped they didn't do anything illegal to the poor boy that had been seduced. Naraku was said to have gone missing; Sesshoumaru wasn't too worried. The spider usually crawled back home when he was done infecting some part of Japan with his presence. At the moment, only the old man remained in the house, and other than greeting his guests, Sesshoumaru knew that he usually retreated back into his study; he never came out otherwise._

_Sesshoumaru slid open the shoji door, freezing in his study the young woman staring blankly out her window, up at the clear blue sky. The entire room was thrashed; only Kikyo was pristine, who sat serenely in the center of all the destruction, wearing her best red kimono with black and gold dragons carefully stitched into the silk. Dolls that she had once collected so arduously lay ripped open all around her, their heads ripped off and cotton spilling from their open necks._

_She was humming, he realized as he came closer. Singing under her breath in a light, serene tone even as she ripped open yet another doll. _

"_Kagome, Kagome, the bird in the cage," she sang, her eyes staring up at the sky even as she ripped off a leg. "When, when will you come out?"_

_Sesshoumaru cautiously made his way closer. "Kikyo…?" He hated that song. Few had really dissected its meaning._

"_In the evening of the dawn, the crane and turtle slipped." She turned her head, just slightly, and ripped off its arms. _

"_Kikyo, what are you doing?"_

"_Who stands right behind you now?" Kikyo smiled and ripped off its head. She turned to Sesshoumaru, smiling brightly in greeting as she reached for a tray of cold tea, ignoring the swirls of cotton that had fallen inside the cup as she held it up to Sesshoumaru. "Hello, my dear. Would you like some tea?"_

_~N~_

_Sesshoumaru frowned down at the tea in his hands as he finished the ceremony, practicing alone in their family __chashitsu__, the tea house. The 4.5 tatami in floor area had been built for this purpose; with its low ceiling; the hearth built into the floor; shoji screens; an alcove for hanging scrolls and placing other decorative objects; and several entrances for host and guests, it was the perfect place for Sesshoumaru to go and clear his mind._

_Inuyasha had been away for business; young and good looking with an open attitude, his was the ideal personality for going out and attracting new customers, as well as testing new teas. Their import/export business was going well; Inuyasha usually travelled, while Sesshoumaru took care of things from home. Their parents were mainly retired, and Sesshoumaru preferred it that way; he liked running the business his way. _

_Running feet reached his ears, long before the door flew open to the tea house; Sesshoumaru scowled in anger at the servants flushed face. "What is it?"_

"_Sesshoumaru-sama!" The servant cried. "Fire! The mountains are on fire!"_

_Sesshoumaru rose immediately, not caring if his white kimono got dirty, and flew out of the small tea house and took to the air; the Furusawa house was downwind; no wonder he could not smell the smoke until he saw the flames. Panic pitched low in his belly when he saw the Furusawa house up in flames. He went even faster, bursting through the burning roof and landing in the middle of Kikyo's bedroom. _

_She was still sitting where he had last seen her; in the middle of the room, only this time a bloody knife was held in her hand and her lantern had been thrown across the room; it was what started the fire. Sesshoumaru was amazed Kikyo was even alive. "Come on," he called. "We have to get out of here! You'll die!"_

"_I'm already dead." She replied calmly, her eyes glazed over, her smile a little crazed. "He killed Inuyasha, did you know that? Then tucked his body away so that I'd never be able to find him. I don't want to live in a world that doesn't have Inuyasha in it. "_

_Sesshoumaru froze, pain punching him in the gut, but he couldn't believe her. Inuyasha was away on business. That was why he had not contacted Sesshoumaru; he was busy. "That's not possible."_

"_He killed him, so I killed him." She laughed, her throat scratchy now from all the smoke. "I cut out his heart and buried it, so that he can never find it. He'll wander all throughout purgatory, never to be happy, because I took his heart away from him. He deserves to die. They _all_ deserve to die. My hand is the hand of justice. It's my duty to strike evil from this earth."_

_She was broken. The pain of that knowledge numbed him, but he stepped forward anyways and picked her small body up and cradled her against his chest, then jumped out of the hole he created in the ceiling and into clean air. _

"_Kagome, Kagome, the bird in the cage," Kikyo started to sing, her hand still clutching the bloody knife. "When will you come out? In the evening of the dawn, the crane and turtle slipped."_

_Sesshoumaru hated this song. The turtle, the symbol of longevity; the crane, the symbol of luck, happiness, and fidelity. In the song, they slipped and fell, and essentially broke. It was a song that spoke of their broken promise._

"_Who stands right behind you now?" Kikyo raised the knife, tucking the blade close to her as she raised her other hand to caress Sesshoumaru's cheek with bloody fingerprints. She whispered the last lines, even as her fingers tightened on the handle of the knife. "At dawns and evenings, who is in front of the back, where a crane and turtle slipped and fell?"_

_Sesshoumaru cried out as she plunged the knife into her heart. _

_She died with a peaceful smile on her face._

~N~

"What happened after that?" Kagome asked quietly, her eyes a little damp.

"I buried her body in the garden where she and Inuyasha used to meet. She would have liked that, I think." Sesshoumaru replied, leaning back against the sink.

"After that? What about your family…?"

Sesshoumaru's heart felt like it was being squeezed, but he answered anyways. "Naraku had killed my stepmother while my father was away. During a tea ceremony, I believe he must have poisoned my father; by the time the fire reached our house, my father was weak, and could not escape in time, for he refused to leave my mother's body. They both died."

Kagome's brow crinkled. "Didn't you try to save them?"

Sesshoumaru's brow crinkled. "I went to the house. I went to find them…"

Studying him, Kagome smiled a little at his confusion. "It's all right if you don't remember. I'm sure it's like in cases like yours."

Eyes narrowing, Sesshoumaru glared at Kagome. "Cases like mine?"

Kagome stared at him, and something seemed to shift in her eyes just before they went blank; Sesshoumaru was sure, then, that there was something she was not telling him. "Heartbreak," she said softly. "I wouldn't want to remember either."

Kagome turned back to her cold breakfast, and with robotic-like movements, ate every bite.


	11. Chapter 11

Standard disclaimer applies.

Thank you so much for everyone who has enjoyed this story so far, and thank you so much for nominating The Revenant in the 2011 4th Quarter Dokuga Awards for Best Darkfic/Horror!

…

The Revenant

Chapter Eleven

By: Luna

…

Kagome woke up to the feeling as if someone was watching her. Her eyes fluttered open, automatically tracking the shadows that darkened her bedroom, watching for any flicker of movement. Her heartbeat started a slow, heavy thrum, and she held her breath in hopes that it wouldn't come out in harsh pants. Sitting up slowly, she looked around, and ended up looking towards the shoji door of her room. A faint light was illuminated outside of it. It was still, as if it was merely waiting for Kagome to notice before it slowly moved away, and her room was covered in darkness again.

Releasing her breath slowly, she looked down at her wrist watch, her brow furrowing.

_3:33am_

The seconds portion of the watch was frozen; the whole face of the watch was frozen, as if time had stopped. She pulled back the covers and stood from her futon, and slowly walked towards the shoji door that led out towards her veranda, and slowly slid open the door. Everything was frozen, as if she was watching a movie and somebody pressed 'pause.' The leaves that had been blowing in the wind were literally frozen in midair; curiously, Kagome reached out and plucked one, studying it for a moment before letting go, and letting it hang in midair once more.

_A dream, _she thought, still unable to muster up any type of alarm. _It would be useless to scream here._

The wind wasn't blowing, and even the trees were still. Looking up, Kagome stared up at the bright, full face of the moon. A moon ring cleared the path around it, the circular ring a milky white. Turning away, she stared back at the shoji door that lead towards the hallway, and started her way towards it, picking up her nemaki* to pull it on over her white sleeping yukata. Sliding open the door, she took one step out, looking back towards the end of the hallway that led to the stairs before looking back in the direction of the den.

A fait light seemed to be emanating just around the corner. Kagome debated only for a moment before deciding to follow it. She stepped around the corner, and came face to face with… herself. _Kikyo_. There were subtle differences, she thought, staring at the smiling woman before her. Her hair was straight and longer, her bangs cut straight across her brow. She wore a violet kimono with silver butterflies, her hands folded demurely in front of her. Her eyes were serene, as well as her smile. Tipping her head to the side, she lifted one hand out in front of her before pointing in the direction of the front door.

As she passed through the den, and then into the living room, they passed a sleeping Sesshoumaru who was stretched out on her couch, his beautiful face in repose. In the moonlight, he looked transparent; he looked like he wasn't even there. He didn't look like he was breathing; even he seemed frozen in this odd dream world. Looking towards Kikyo, she met the other woman's patient smile, and left Sesshoumaru there to follow her.

Kikyo led her outside, past the tea house and the old bath house, and down the lane towards a dirt road. She forgot her shoes; it was only when she stepped on a sharp rock that she realized it. Oddly enough, the pain didn't register. She knew she stepped on it and it _should_ hurt, but she didn't feel anything. Walking along, she followed Kikyo down a narrow path that lead to a small glen filled with wildflowers.

She pointed towards the meadow. _"Our heart is here. He can't touch us here."_

There was the sudden image of Inuyasha and Kikyo embracing amongst the flowers, their ghostly images fading. After a moment, Kagome looked back at Kikyo. She was still looking at the spot where her past self had embraced her lover. Kikyo pointed there, and, after a moment, Kagome crept forward. She tripped over a flat rock and landed face first into the flowers, and turned towards the offending rock that tripped her and kicked at it angrily when she noticed the narrow cut on the top of her foot. The rock moved, then fell inside the hole it had covered.

Freezing, Kagome stared at the flat rock, then at Kikyo who only smiled back. Creeping forward, she looked inside, her eyes widening at the site of the leather bound journal that was tucked away inside. Lifting it reverently, Kagome held it to her chest and stood to face Kikyo. After a moment, her ever present smiling face was looking back at Kagome, and soon she led the way back to the main house. Instead of going inside, they went around towards the garden.

Kikyo paused before the bridge that led towards the island, her eyes trained on the wisteria tree. _"He is buried there. They found his body amongst the ashes, and they buried him there, under the boughs of his beloved wisteria. Here, he can live forever… if he wishes."_

"What do you mean?" Kagome asked, the question the first words she spoke since she woke up.

Kikyo turned to her. _"You can stop him. You can send him to the next world… if you wish."_

Kagome stared back her, not comprehending at all. Kikyo didn't seem to notice; instead she pointed towards the trees that surrounded the property, past the markers that separated the garden from the forest that surrounded the property. _"His heart is buried there. Be careful where you tread."_

Kikyo faded away without further ado, and Kagome was standing alone in the standstill world of her dreams. She looked around, hesitating for a moment before crossing the bridge to the island. She touched the wisteria gently, almost expectantly. When nothing happened, she frowned and looked around, wondering what her predecessor had meant.

Since nothing had happened, she walked back and looked towards the forest, wondering at the pitch of trepidation in her belly. She walked towards the forest, pushing leaves that were still frozen in midair out of her way, pushing apart branches and stepping over smaller foliage. She didn't know what she was looking for; she just knew she hadn't found it yet.

Her foot got caught on a tree branch, and she fell with a startled cry of pain. She fell right through a spider web, and landed hard on the forest floor. Pain didn't register again; she cried because she thought she should, but after a few moments she felt stupid for crying over something she didn't even feel. She laid there for a moment with her eyes closed, wondering what the hell she was doing.

_Kagome…_

Something was crawling up her arm, the touch so light as to be insidious, and her eyes snapped open with panic eating inside her, and it only doubled when she saw the gigantic black spider that was crawling towards her face, it's massive jaws coming closer and closer, the arachnid the only creature moving in this stuck in motion world. She screamed, long and loud, swiping at the spider, clawing at her skin to get rid of the feel of the spiders legs on her skin.

She scuttled back the way she came, and fell over the branch she had fallen over in the first place, and once more landed hard on the floor and stayed there, breathing hard. She looked at the branch, at its white, decaying limb sticking out of wet dirt and mulch. No, she thought, numb. It wasn't a tree branch. White and decaying, a tibia bone was arching out of the ground.

She followed the limb up to the knee, and through the ferns and fallen debris, a pelvic bone and rib cage. She crawled closer, and pushed aside a fern with shaky hands. She heard the _bump-bump-bump_ of a heartbeat, and assumed it was her own since she was so frightened, but it was beating too calmly for her panicked state. The skull of the skeleton was clean and white under the full moon, and her breath stuck in her throat at the eyeballs still resting in their sockets, at the teeth that seemed too sharp and elongated for a human.

Her breath shuddered out in panicked bursts as they eyes turned in their sockets towards her, and the jaw opened in a gaping, skeletal grin. _"I knew you'd come to me."_

_Naraku._ Recoiling, Kagome screamed and screamed…

And woke up seconds later in her sweat-soaked futon. _A dream,_ she thought, placing shaky hands over her eyes. _A dream, a dream. It was only a dream._ She stretched her legs out, flinching slightly as her feet chafed against her blanket. She sat up abruptly and flung her blanket off of her, and stared in horror at what she saw.

Her feet were dirty.

When she stood up and reached for her robe, she found the leather bound notebook that had she found in her dreams.

…

*Nemaki: The cotton Kimono robe or also called a lined cotton yukata has a thin gauze lining making it a perfect for use as a house robe, bath robe and as sleeping wear.


End file.
